


Two Plus One

by ShutUpandPull



Category: Castle
Genre: Caskett, Castle AU, Multi, follow-up piece
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-02
Updated: 2015-02-20
Packaged: 2018-03-10 03:43:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3275411
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShutUpandPull/pseuds/ShutUpandPull
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A follow-up piece to Another Door Opens. Alexis returns home from CA and begins to rebuild her relationship with Rick, while Rick continues to build his relationship with Kate.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Dusk’s shadow had already fallen across the facade of the Beckett brownstone by the time Kate and Rick’s cab pulled up out front. Kate pushed open the rear passenger door, climbed gracefully out of the backseat and stepped up onto the sidewalk while Rick lingered behind, pulled cash from his wallet for the fare. He couldn't take his eyes off of her, though, he quickly discovered, the vision of her standing so beautifully in wait far more worthy of his attention than anything else at all in that moment.

His eyes remained fixed on her form, which she’d comfortably yet elegantly dressed in an A-line skirt and a perfectly over-sized cashmere top, the tiny hairs on the back of his neck standing tall as though electrically charged. His lips parted, their corners headed upward in smile when the driver abruptly interrupted the reverie, cleared his throat with less-than-subtle insistence. But Rick's eyes, defiant and addicted, never veered from Kate, his fingers the only part of him that moved a muscle, managing, finally, to pass the money owed along to their irked pilot.

“Sir?” the heavily-accented man called out, through the clear but visibly aged safety partition between them. “ _Sir_!” His tone grew more emphatic the second time, Rick’s initial lack of response driving him to add a knock against the scuffed thermoplastic for good measure.

But Kate was also wearing the heels. _The_ heels. The effect of those red heels on Rick’s brain was like that of gravity on his body. It was a losing battle, not worth the fight.

He watched the muscles in her calves dance as she pivoted around, expecting to find him there behind her, several minutes having passed, and he gave silent thanks for everyone and everything responsible for the union of her mile-high legs with the enviable leather. He imagined she took amusement in it, knowing how they affected him and electing to wear them to his first meeting with her parents. Wickedly cruel.

“Sorry, what?” Rick mumbled, when the driver’s once soft knock grew to a forceful whack.

There she was. Kate stood in front of the open cab door she’d exited from moments before, having returned to collect all she'd arrived with. “This was a _dinner_ invitation, Writer, not a breakfast invitation." She snickered, entertained by her own barb. “Cold feet?”

Rick turned his head to find himself face-to-face with the driver, the single dollar bill he’d been given pressed against the partition with a scowl. “Oh, shit. I’m so- I’m sorry, my man.” He felt instantly embarrassed by the blunder, more so since Kate was there to witness it, and reached back into his wallet, grabbed enough to cover the fare and then some, leaving the cabbie with something to finally smile about.

“They won’t bite, Rick, I promise. Now, come on.” She reached out her hand and he took it, as he gave one last glance to the merry driver who nodded knowingly, as though he finally understood what the entire mix-up was all about. She really was spectacular. Everyone saw it.

“Sorry,” he said, as he fidgeted with the tuck in his shirt and flattened out the pockets of his pants, the cab finally out of sight. “And I’m not nervous, if that’s what you think. I’ll have you know parents love me. Alexis can tell you.”

Kate’s eyes drifted down the front of his body and stopped at his waist. “Is that so? Even when you meet them with your fly unzipped?”

“Wh-” His fingers flew to his zipper, his face hot with humiliation. "Okay, that's very funny, Counselor. Ha-ha.”

She giggled and bit at her lip. The heels _and_ the lip. God help him on this night.

His expression fell serious and he stepped forward into her space. “Now, are we going to go in there and do this or not, because I’d be more than happy to skip dinner, take you home with me, and move right to dessert.” Her fingers had been spread wide against the inside of his thigh during the trip over- the _very_ inside, the dangerous inside, the inside that’d forced him to play silly road trip games in his head to distract himself so he wouldn’t get into any trouble.

But she wasn’t shaken by it. Kate welcomed his sudden closeness, his directness. She fed off of it. “There’s nothing I’d like more than for you to take me, I can assure you.” Her tongue dampened her lips to a shine. “So, how about this: If you can manage to behave yourself for a couple of hours, I’ll take _you_ home for the most delicious dessert you’ve ever eaten.”

Rick swore he could hear the sound of his own swallow. “Oh, you’ve got yourself a deal, beautiful.” His excitement bordered on infantile, but he couldn’t have cared less. “Please, lead the way.”

He followed Kate up the steps to the front door and she pressed on the buzzer to announce their arrival. He stood close behind, close enough to breathe in the scent of her hair, close enough to run his fingertips along the curve of her hips, close enough to do so many other things, both inappropriate and untimely, though he surely thought of them all.

He really wasn’t nervous, though. Parents always loved him.

**xxxx**

Johanna opened the door with a beaming smile that, much like Kate's, lit up her entire face. She held a long silver cooking spoon in hand, and she pulled her daughter in for a lengthy hug, one that Rick felt warmed by as he looked on, Kate offering no resistance or desire to break free. Their bond was clear to him, beautiful in its sincerity, even in those brief moments, and he couldn’t help but think of Alexis, hope that once she returned to New York, to him, they might find their way back to that place, to that ease, to that harmony.

“Well, he sure is far more handsome in person than he is in those book jacket photos, isn’t he?” Johanna’s question was a rhetorical one. Her tone suggested as much, though Kate offered an audible hum of agreement. “I’m sorry, how rude of me. Would you like a hug too, Richard?” she asked, separating from her daughter and already moving toward him with open arms.

“Best offer I’ve had all day,” he replied with a smile. “But, please, if we’re going to be sharing hugs out on your front stoop, you should probably call me Rick.”

Johanna nodded and leaned in. “Well then, welcome to our home, Rick. Now, let’s go inside and get you and me a drink."

Kate grabbed for Rick’s hand and they followed Johanna down a long hallway from the front door toward the kitchen in back. The wood floors beneath them were dark, beautifully restored, and they creaked romantically under foot. Along each pearl grey-hued wall, photos hung like puzzle pieces of the Beckett family story, a timeline of their journey to the present, one that Rick hoped to revisit with Kate as his guide, should the evening grant him the opportunity.

“It smells amazing in here,” Rick gushed, as they made their way into the large, open kitchen.

“Do you like Indian food, Rick?” Johanna dropped the spoon she’d been holding into the sink and reached for the two bottles of wine from the counter nearby.

“Oh, I like it very much. I don’t get to enjoy it often enough.”

“And I don’t get to make it often enough," she said enthusiastically, "so it sounds like we’re a perfect match tonight!”

Jim snuck unseen into the kitchen and stopped just a few steps behind Rick and Kate. “A perfect match, huh? You finally going to run off and leave this old man behind, JB?” He teased, of course. His playful grin gave away as much.

“Well," Johanna began, without missing a beat, "Rick _is_ world-famous, but I thought I’d wait and see how the night goes, JB. I’ve just met the man, after all, and there is the matter of his beautiful, brilliant, supremely talented girlfriend.” She smiled at Kate who, by the look on her face, found her parents’ entire exchange utterly charming.

“She is that,” Jim agreed, with a notable tone of pride, before he kissed his daughter on the cheek. “Hey, Katie.”

“Hi, Dad.”

Rick turned and extended his hand. “Mr. Beckett, Rick Castle, it's a pleasure to finally meet you.” Jim’s grip was firm, lingering, and his expression steely, Rick’s toothy grin quickly fading under its weight.

“So, Ric _k_ _C_ astle,” he replied, enunciating the hard consonants of Rick’s name with an unsettling severity, “does my beautiful, brilliant, supremely talented daughter, here, have cause for concern?”

Rick swallowed down a gulp of air and released an awkward sound that resembled something in the neighborhood of a cough. “Concern, sir?” Jim still hadn’t released his hand.

“Have you any intention of running off with my wife this evening? Not that I could blame you, of course.”

His concession didn’t settle Rick any.

“ _Dad!_ ” Kate hissed. “You promised. Leave Mr. World Famous alone, please.” She pressed her body against Rick’s back and circled her hands around his waist- a sign of solidarity.

“Oh, fine,” her father conceded, releasing his hand's grip in lighthearted defeat. “Some fun you are, Katie. It’s nice to meet you too, Rick. Please forgive me. I work a lot and don’t get out much, so I have to take my fun where I can get it.”

“Well, as father to a daughter, myself, I foresee a lot of _fun_ ahead in my future too. Think nothing of it.” Rick's fingers found Kate's hands and he enveloped them with his own. “Oh, and just to be very, very clear, your not-enough-good-adjectives-exist-to-adequately-describe-her daughter is entirely safe with me. Hurting her is something I'll work my hardest every single day to never do."

Jim looked to his daughter and he could see it. He just knew. “I believe that’s true, Rick. I really do.”

“Hey, if you’re done with the harassment portion of the evening, JB, would you like to offer our guests some wine, maybe?” Johanna scolded in a tease.

“Whatever you say, JB, whatever you say.” Jim stepped around the counter toward her. “The wife has spoken. Come grab a glass, guys, and let’s eat.”

**xxxx**

"You sure I can't get you any more, Rick?"

"No, thank you, Johanna," he sighed, with a hint of regret. "Three helpings is where I draw the line. Any more and I run the risk of truly embarrassing myself."

"Nonsense," she chuckled. "You're far from it, especially in this house of misfits. How about some coffee, at least."

"Want me to make it, Mom?" Kate interjected, abruptly ending the side conversation she had going with her father.

"No, I've got it, sweetie. Why don't you take Rick and give him the grand tour. It'll just be a few minutes."

"Okay, then. We'll be right back. You two behave yourselves while we're gone. I know how you grown-ups can be," Kate teased, with a tap to her father's arm.

"I sure hope my daughter isn't such a killjoy when she's with you, Rick." Jim winked at Kate and she stuck her tongue out in silent reply.

Kate pushed her chair back from the table with a giggle and Rick followed her lead. She drew her hand down the length of his arm and took his hand, weaved her fingers, once again, between the warmth of his. A sudden, overwhelming feeling of elation washed over her. She was surrounded by the three people in the world she loved most, the three people who fed her heart, her mind, and her soul more than any others, and she all at once felt the intense power of that rarity.

"So, where would you like to start, Writer? Bottom to top or top to bottom?" Her tone was wickedly suggestive, deliberate in its effort to fluster.

"You're cruel, woman, you know that? All of these empty rooms and I can't have you in any of them."

"Sorry, but coffee doesn't require enough prep time for me to do to you what I'd like. You're just going to have to be patient." Kate tugged at his arm, pulled him toward her father's study. "This is my dad's man cave, office, library, general superhero fortress. He loves it in here."

"Can't say that I blame him. It's _perfect_. All of us superheroes need a room like this," he whispered into the hair hanging loosely across her ear. "Though, it's not really much of a fortress if we can just walk right in. Maybe I should give him some pointers on how to beef up his lair security."

Kate spun to face him. "You really are quite a nerd, Writer."

Her subsequent deep but over-too-quickly kiss caught him off guard, and she had to grab for his arms to steady him. The soft moan that escaped her lips gave away her secret, the one she didn't much care to keep hidden, truth be told. Her parents were entirely smitten with him- with his charm, with his intelligence, with his humor and kindness- after just a couple of hours, and Kate was already certain of it without a word of proof from either. It made her love him more. It made her want him more. It made her ache to show him how much.

"I can accept that. I wear my nerd with great pride, Counselor." His breath was deliciously ragged, entirely her doing.

She leaned in for his ear, her message too important to be lost or misheard. "Well, just know that if my parents weren't in the other room, right now you wouldn't be wearing anything at all." She pulled back slowly, loathing every inch of distance, his scent utterly intoxicating and seductive to her senses. "So, where to next?"

He managed no more than a grunt before she disappeared out the door with a perfectly bawdy _You coming,_ _Writer?_

 

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Kate's back pressed firmly against the wall outside her apartment's front door, Rick’s knee wedged between the bare skin of her yielding thighs, the hem of her skirt bunched and wrinkled as it inched slowly higher. Five, six, ten minutes, they’d been there, just inches from the door’s beckoning lock, inches that might as well have been miles given their lack of urgency to give it any attention whatsoever.

The possessive fingers of Rick’s right hand anchored along the curve of her hip and held her in place; his left palm, flat and tight along the doorframe, supported the angle of his body's lean. Kate whispered his name into the hush- not a question, not a statement, but a demand- and he obliged, granted her more of him, discounting as powerless any potential interferences their public surroundings presented.

His mouth, warm and open, connected unbroken with the flat of her neck, and her exquisitely-heeled legs buckled under her. She fought valiantly to try and steady her body’s already wavering balance, her fingers wrapped tight around a fistful of the soft cotton of his shirt.

" _Fu_ …how do you do that?" Her words were thin, her voice as unsteady as her body- audibly hungry.

"Do what?" he exhaled more than spoke. "What am I doing?" He waited in curious wonder, certain he’d never wanted more to know the answer to any question.

Kate could feel it deep in her bones as his fingertips began their crawl under the hem of her loose top and tickled delicately along her waist. "Make me feel like…that." She couldn’t control the hitch in her words any more than she could control the sun and the moon. His relentless attention to her skin, the brush of his tongue’s very tip, stole nearly every ounce of her breath.

Rick eased his head back, his lips suddenly inches from hers, the length of his body as connected to her as their position would allow. The word he heard her speak was simple- _that_ \- but her tongue wrapped around its fragile delivery struck him like lightning and ignited his every nerve.

He let it linger in the air for no longer than a few seconds. He needed to know. "You going to keep me in suspense here, or what?" He slid his knee upward along her thigh- deliberate, calculated. "Or maybe you want me to guess." He watched her eyes watch him. "Is that it? Do you want me to try and guess how I make you feel, Kate?" His body practically begged for her consent.

She offered no words, only a nod of acquiescence, and he grinned with the thrill of her challenge.

"Okay, well, I suppose I’ll start with an easy one and say frustrated.” His fingers kneaded at the warm skin covering the rounded bone of her hip. “Do I make you feel frustrated, Kate?”

Absent any sound, her tooth pinned the flesh of her bottom lip and she shook her head. Wrong.

Strike one.

"No? Really? Hmmm. I thought for sure.” He pursed his lips and crinkled his brow as though in deep in thought. “Well, then, how about sad." He inched forward, bit playfully at her neck. She could feel the mischievous curve of his lips slide upward along her jaw as she murmured a soft _nope_.

Strike two.

"Ooo, wait! I've got it now. Third time’s the charm, Counselor. You ready to give me my prize?” His mouth was nearly pressed against her ear, his voice a flirtatious whisper. “Surely I make you feel nervous.” His tongue flicked at her lobe and he felt her shiver. “Oh, it's _definitely_ nervous. I know it."

Strike three.

Kate’s hand grabbed for the back of his neck and squeezed at the hot skin there. It stopped his movement entirely, his eyes locked on her radiant and thoughtful expression.

"Three up and three out. Seems you’re out of guesses, Writer. Too bad. Guess I’m just going to have to tell you.” She smiled ever so slightly, just enough for him to catch the modest crinkle of her eyes. “But, before I do, you should prepare yourself.”

Rick laughed, nervously so. “Wait, what are we talking about here? Like, I need to grab a flashlight prepared or-”

“You should really take this more seriously,” she scolded coquettishly, her fingers still firm against the soft fuzz of his hairline.

His smug grin quickly faded.

“I do. I will. I mean, I think I am.” He took a deep breath in. “I do feel prepared. I think. You can tell me, yeah, sure. Go ahead.” His awkward babbling was clear evidence to the contrary.

Kate’s lips parted and she fought impossibly hard to hold back any sign of the amusement his sudden unease generated.

“Okay, Writer, here goes.” She guided him in toward her, closer, though the distance between them was already minimal. “You make me feel thoroughly, utterly, completely _alive_.”

“I-” He couldn’t speak at first. It was as though her admission sucked every ounce of author’s eloquence out of him. “God, that’s a perfect word for it,” he sighed. “As I writer, I have to tell you- I’m envious.” She smiled broadly and he couldn’t help but reciprocate. “I feel exactly the same way, more every second I’m around you.”

“Oh, I wasn’t finished,” she continued, her voice husky, his attention recaptured. “When you’re near me, Richard Castle,” she rested her forehead gently against his, “when your hands touch me, when your mouth tastes me, when your words echo inside me, all I want to do is show you how alive you make me feel.”

Rick tried to pull back, to create enough space between them to see her face, her eyes, her mouth, something their current proximity prohibited.

“Kate, I want-”

“Shh.” She hushed him again, her warm breath passing between them. “Watching you tonight with my parents, listening to you- all I wanted to do was push you into a room and-”

Rick’s mouth was on hers, hard and without warning, before she could even form the next word, but she didn’t fight it. She reached frantically, ungracefully for her purse which had dropped to the floor at their feet earlier, but the distance was too great for her arm with his body tight against her.

Kate could feel it more and more now, the effect of all of it on his body, and she wanted desperately to have him. She managed to push herself away from the wall and knock him backward enough to grab her bag, her keys. “I want you to hold whatever thoughts you’re having _just_ long enough for me to get this damn door open. Do you understand?”

He exhaled a soft chuckle. “So, I guess this means dessert is finally served?”

She looked back over her shoulder, her key already at work on the lock. “Followed immediately by breakfast, if you play your cards right.”

“I told you parents always love me,” he grinned, as he followed her through the open door.

 

**xxxx**

 

It was dark and quiet in every corner of her place, their simultaneous, accelerated breaths the only hint anyone inhabited it at all. Their naked bodies were draped across her bed in a tangle, pillows piled on either end- none in actual use- discarded his and hers clothing sprinkled under and around their outlines. Neither of them had moved a muscle since he slid out of her body with a final exhale of pleasure. Neither of them wanted to.

“Promise me we’ll go to your parents’ for dinner _a lot_ ,” Rick teased, only half-kidding, his body still coming down from the high of its union with hers. “That was…incredible. He squeezed at whatever soft corner of her skin found itself beneath his fingers in that moment. “You’re incredible.”

“I am, aren’t I?” Kate internalized a giggle, her reply more apt to be one of his construction, but he could feel the muscles in her belly tighten, giving her away.

“Your immodesty only makes me want you more, so be careful what you say.” He turned his head and granted his mouth access to the curve at the base of her neck, the tip of his tongue delighting in the gentle mixture of salt and soap on her skin. “I so wish I had my journal with me right now,” he sighed against her.

“You want to write about _that_?” She clutched playfully at his tussled hair. “Maybe I misunderstood the theme of this new book of yours.”

Rick rolled her body up onto his, her legs bracketing the muscles of his thighs, her fingers spread wide against the contour of his chest. “I can write that story for you too, if you want. You just say the word, beautiful.” He pulled her down for a kiss, his hands large and insistent. “But, no, all I meant was that I feel so fucking inspired when I’m around you. And, I suppose, _in_ you. I can’t get it all down fast enough. That’s all.”

She smiled wide, though he couldn’t see it through the blackness between them. “Well, I think that’s pretty _fucking_ romantic.”

“You wound with your mockery,” he pouted.

“Aw, tell me where it hurts, Writer, and I’ll kiss it and make it better.”

Rick’s fingers tickled up and down her spine as he paused to contemplate the offer. “Come here,” he insisted, finally. “Lean in here a second.”

Kate moved without hesitation, the burning muscles of her thighs allowing it but protesting with a delicious, gentle tremor. “Hmm,” she hummed at his ear.

“It hurts everywhere,” he whispered, and they began again.

 

**xxxx**

 

“What’s goin’ on up there?” Kate’s voice crackled with the new morning, her cheek pressed against the pillow just inches from the skin of his belly as he leaned at a soft angle against the headboard behind them. “You okay?” she asked through a stifled stretch. “Why are you up so early?”

“Early?” He turned his head toward her. “It’s almost noon, lazybones. I’ve been sitting here waiting to see those gorgeous eyes of yours for hours.”

Her head sprung from the pillow in search of evidence to support his outlandish assertion. “How did I-I never—wow,” she marveled, catching a blurry glimpse of the red neon on the nightstand.  “Sorry, babe.” She rolled her body back toward his, rested her head against the sheet at his lap, let the scent of him and the feel of him invade her senses.

Rick lifted his hand to the wave of hair that now trailed across his middle and he buried his fingers deep within it, evoking a storm of memories from their hours together the night before. “I like when you call me that,” he told her reverently, his focus drifting back out into the open space of the bedroom. “And you definitely don’t have to apologize. After last night, you more than earned the right to sleep all day long.”

He was trying, hard, but even in her less than alert state Kate could tell his mind was elsewhere. “And what about you?” She reached up and traced his jawline with the tip of her finger. “You earned it too. I mean, not as much as me, of course, but-”

“Yeah, yeah. Like I told you last night, be careful what you say.” His fingers pulled gently through the strands of her hair, over and over, as though it was soothing him just as much as it was her.

“Come on, tell me what you’re thinking about. Maybe I can help. I’m very smart, you know. Went to law school and everything.” She giggled but little more than a scratch came out, her voice not yet as awake as some of the rest of her.

Rick met her eyes and watched her for a long moment, just watched her as she looked up at him from the pocket of his body. “The smartest,” he assured her, with all the sincerity in the world. “I guess I just woke up with Alexis on my mind.”

“And that made you sad?”

He shook his head gently, cupped her exposed cheek. “No, no, I’m not sad. I’m just thinking about it and lost in it a bit. She’ll be back in a couple of weeks and I want everything to be--”

“Perfect?”

“Perfect.” He took a deep breath in and released it slowly. “I just want to do everything right. I couldn’t take it if she wanted to leave again.”

“Rick,” she began, before she uprighted her body and tucked in close, “you know it won’t be perfect. Perfect doesn’t happen under the best of circumstances. You’re going to be starting a new chapter with her- forgive the pun- and you’ll do the very best you can to be the very best father you can. Alexis knows that because you told her that very thing in L.A. and you always tell her the truth. She trusts you and she believes in you. That’s why she’s coming home. You just have to keep believing in her and in yourself.”

He leaned in without a word and softly kissed her lips before she lifted her body onto his lap and wrapped her arms around him. “I love you so much,” he whispered. “Thank you for always knowing exactly what to say.”

She released her hold and pulled back. “Well, in that case, how does a nap sound?”

“Like music to my ears.”

 


	3. Chapter 3

Kate hung up her phone, slid it across the desk with a frustrated huff, and pushed her chair all-too-hard backward into the credenza with an unintended thud. It was late, far too late to still be at work, especially on a should’ve-been-routine Wednesday night, especially when she knew exactly what awaited her just a short cab ride away at the loft.  She thought about it all day, ever since she stepped from the steam of her morning shower and pulled open the drawer lined with satin and lace reminders of where she wanted him most. Honestly, the promise of him may’ve been the only thing that carried her through.

Rick had already messaged her several times over the past couple of hours, his impatience undoubtedly shared, but all she could tell him was _soon_. She was as anxious as he was, their time together over the past week having consisted only of shared voices by phone and a set of salacious texts that would’ve made almost anyone blush. In fact, he’d offered earlier that afternoon to send a photo along as proof of his state of eagerness. Kate declined, though, not because she wasn’t curious, but rather because she was, and she knew better than to start down that dangerous road with hours still left in her day.

She’d been on conference calls nearly non-stop with their newest Chicago clients for the past two days, to the point that her ear had gone frustratingly numb on more than one occasion. There was always some fire that needed to be extinguished, it seemed, and everyone believed Kate was the one with a finger on the magic pin. Often that was true. Very often. She was immensely talented at her job, and she knew that to be true. She worked tirelessly to make it so, industrious to a fault, perhaps, and the notion of allowing someone else to do the work she could well manage herself wasn’t one she often entertained.

She headed out of her office and down the hall toward her father’s, her hands pulling her hair up into a loose twist as she went. She’d never told him so, but she loved being there alone with him when it was quiet like that, when it was just them. The soothing sound of his voice nearby always carried across the silence and made its way to her ear. Even on the worst days it made her feel better, somehow.

“Hey, Mr. Beckett. Almost done?” She dropped down into one of the chairs set up along the front edge of his desk.

“Hey, Ms. Beckett,” Jim smiled, “I’ve been done with my stuff for hours. I was just waiting on you.” It was clearly a shtick, familiar banter, a thing father and daughter did. “You look like hell, Katie. Hump day beat you up pretty good, huh?”

What a choice of words, she thought…hump day. It only served to remind her of what she’d been missing all week. What she wanted. What she _needed_. If she hadn’t left her phone in her own office she might be scrolling through saved text messages now as she sat there. “Gee, thanks, Dad. Thanks for the hit while I’m down.” She rubbed mercilessly at her eyes. “Simms wants me to fly out there tomorrow. Something in the contracts from LinCor has him all riled up.”

“Shit, seriously? When is Simms _not_ riled up about something in a contract?” He sat forward in his chair and leaned in toward her. “I already know the answer to this, but I’m going to ask anyway. Do you want me to tag along?”

“No, Dad, it’s fine,” she sighed, no hesitation at all in her reply. “I’ll take care of it.”

“As you always do, of course. That’s why the missus and I hired you.” He winked and it elicited a smile, albeit a somewhat feeble one. “Is there something else going on, Katie? More than Simms, I mean. You seem down.”

Her dad always knew. “Not really. It’s just--Rick’s daughter is coming home from L.A. on Friday night and I really wanted to be there, that’s all. And _he_ really wanted me to be there. I don’t know how things are going to go in Chicago and if I’ll be able to make it home. It’s just really bad timing.”

“Oh, sweetie, I’m sorry. I know how thrilled he must be and I can imagine how much you were looking forward to it too. We dads all want our daughters around us as much as possible, you know.”

“Subtle, Dad, but I think if I saw you and Mom any more, it’d be bordering on creepy.”

Jim leaned back again into the depths of his chair. “Look, we all know what a miracle worker you are with this contract stuff, so fly out tomorrow and get it done. By Friday afternoon, you’ll be sipping a celebratory mini-bottle of booze in a window seat on your way home. You’ll be back in plenty of time to be there for Rick and his daughter.”

His soothing voice _and_ his wise words. He never faltered with either.

She pushed herself up out of the chair and stepped around his desk, pressed a kiss against his cheek, and switched off his computer monitor. “Thanks, Dad. Now go home and kiss that mother of mine, would ya? I’ll call you from the airport tomorrow when I get in.”

“G’night, Katie. Safe home.”

Oh, but she wasn’t going home, and as she headed back to her office to gather up her things, she felt her somber mood suddenly take a sharp turn for the better.

**xxxx**

She knocked on his door less than an hour later with only one thought on her mind. Rick barely had a _hey_ off his lips before Kate’s were on them, her bag dropped unceremoniously to the foyer floor in a pile along with her rain-speckled jacket. Neither let up until a drop of water tumbled from the muss of her hair onto her cheek with a tickle, and he gently kissed it away before pulling back in need of air.

“Please don’t ever make me wait a whole week for that again,” he exhaled, his forehead pressed lightly against hers. “And note that I did use the magic word which means you have to agree. I’m sure that’s a law I read in some book once.”

“Is that so?” she chuckled. “Was it Sesame Street Law 101?” She pecked quickly at his pout. “How about we leave the law to me, and you stick to writer-y things.”

“I’ll give you writer-y things,” he teased lustfully, his hands tight at her silk-covered waist. “What took you so damn long to get here? Five more minutes and I would’ve had to start without you.”

Kate kissed him fast and hard this time. “Oh, come on. You know no one does it like I do. Not even you, the great Richard Castle.”

Rick smiled as he curled his fingers around her arms to guide her backward toward the bedroom. “Gosh, you know, it’s been so long, Counselor, my memory’s a bit fuzzy. I think you might to have to show me again.” He took another step forward but she held firm in place.

“Wait, Rick. Can we- I need to tell you something first.”

“Of course, yeah.” He took hold of her hands. “That sounds ominous. Is everything okay?”

“I, uh, I talked to one of our Chicago clients tonight. Well, I’ve been talking to them almost non-stop for the last two days, actually. He has some issues with a big contract, and because I know the deal better than anyone, I need to fly out there tomorrow morning to help sort it all out.”

Rick squeezed her fingers supportively. He understood well how important her job was to her and how committed she was to it. He also knew there was no one better at it, which made him immensely proud. “Okay, so, we have tonight. Or, a few hours, at least, right? And then you’ll be back, what, tomorrow night? In and out?”

Kate broke eye contact and looked to the floor. “That’s just it. I don’t really know how much has to be done yet. It could take me more than a day to get through this stuff. This new client is already proving to be a royal pain in the ass.” She slowly met his eyes again. “But Friday is-”

“Alexis,” he interrupted.

“Alexis,” she repeated somberly. “Yeah. And I feel terrible. I know how excited you are that she’s coming home and it was supposed to be a special night. I really wanted to be here for you. _With_ you.” She stepped into him, his expression laced with melancholy. “Did I mention I feel terrible?”

“Hey, it’s fine, Kate. Really.” Rick was a proud man. He tried admirably to mask his disappointment with a feeble grin. “They need you there right now. I understand you need to go. That’s more important. We can do something special when you get back. All three of us.”

She wrapped her arms around his lower back and pulled him against her. “First of all, work isn’t _more_ important. There was a time when it was, but not anymore. And second of all, as I’m thinking about it, it might just be better this way. You two need some time alone after all of this. Celebrating Alexis’ first night back is something you should enjoy together, as a father and daughter.”

He leaned in and kissed her lips softly. “Maybe you’re right. I don’t want to overwhelm her right off the bat, I guess. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want you to be there or that I won’t miss you. I can’t wait for her to meet you.”

“I know. Me too.”

They held onto each other where they stood, the week apart owing them the moments.

“Something smells gooood in here,” Kate said finally, though she’d noticed it as soon as she walked in. “What did you make for me? I’m starving. I think I ate two pieces of an orange and a handful of M & Ms today.”

He shook his head disapprovingly. “Please remind me of that again in an hour so I can be properly outraged.” He drew his knuckles down the line of her cheek. “Right now, I’d very much like to take you into a more appropriate room and make up for some lost time. I promise you the food will taste even better afterwards.”

He tugged gently on her arm and she followed gladly.

**xxxx**

Rick retrieved his Mercedes from the garage and headed for JFK as the sun set that Friday evening. Kate was still in Chicago, set to land the following afternoon, the only flight she could get herself on that wouldn’t have cost the company an arm and a leg. He still wished she was going to be there with him for Alexis’ arrival, for so many reasons. But this was his daughter and this was to be the start of something new- a new him, a new them, after so many months spent adrift. He needed to stand on his own, to show her how much stronger he’d become.

Alexis told him when they spoke earlier in the day he shouldn’t park the car, he shouldn’t bother coming in to meet her at baggage claim because it would only take her a few minutes anyway, and Rick agreed, but with no actual intention of making good on it. He wasn’t willing to give up even those few moments, not after all their time apart, not after the way he’d taken time for granted before she’d gone. He understood now, better than he did before, just what could happen in such a short amount of time- his love for Kate one sure example. Hell, if there weren’t so many security restrictions in place, he knew he’d be at the plane door waiting.

He stood against a pillar just out of the way of foot traffic, weary passengers all around him greeted by family, friends, and lovers as he waited. When he located her flight number from LAX illuminated in red above carousel three, his heart quickened with anticipation. But now it wasn’t nerves as much as it was relief, he realized, a revelation he welcomed with overwhelming gratitude.

Rick plucked his phone from his pocket and composed a text to Kate. Regardless of whether or not it was better for him to welcome Alexis home by himself or not, he still missed her and he still wanted her to know it. _Miss you too_ , she replied. _Enjoy tonight. You both deserve it_. _xx_ She’d call when she got in tomorrow, she promised. He couldn’t wait.

The sudden jolt, then, of the luggage carousel’s movement had his eyes wandering through the crowd that was gathered around in wait. He straightened up, ready to make his move the instant he spotted her. On his tiptoes, a man of already more than six feet, his head pivoted left and right, over and over again, like a spectator of a tennis match whose players were engaged in an extended volley at the net.

“Pssst.”

Alexis crept up behind him, somehow unseen by his roving eye. “Pssst,” she hissed again, more energetic the second time, the din of the crowd around them louder as its numbers grew. “Hey, is that the famous author, Richard Castle?” she called out, his ear not the only she managed to catch as other heads turned.

Rick quickly spun around, his face lighting up in smile when he realized the voice was his daughter’s. “How did you- get over here.” His arms enveloped her and cradled her against him. “I’m so happy to see you,” he told her, with a kiss to her ponytailed, strawberry hair.

“Me too, Dad.” She angled her head upward, her chin at his chest. “But, I thought I told you not to park and come in.”

“Right, well, my listening skills are still a work in progress, I guess. _But_ , I promise they’re already much better than you might remember them.” He squeezed her again, added one more kiss. “Let’s go grab your bags and get home. Your grandmother practically shoved me out the door to come get you. I think she’s a bit sick of seeing just my ugly mug around the loft every day.”

Alexis let out a soft chuckle.

“What?”

“It’s just funny, I guess. I kind of _missed_ seeing your ugly mug every day, Dad.”

He grinned from ear to ear.

His daughter was home.


	4. Chapter 4

Rick woke early Saturday morning, despite having gone to bed just a few hours before, Alexis’ Los Angeles-acclimated internal clock a formidable adversary, one sure to haunt her (or them) for the foreseeable future. His eyes burned and his limbs hung heavy, yet he pushed himself out of bed with palpable elation, each new moment spent in her company the previous night well worth all of the unfavorable aftereffects.

He poked one arm through a sleeve of his robe and nudged open his bedroom door with the other, the unmistakable aroma of his favorite morning blend in welcome collision with his senses. Martha stood in the kitchen with her back to the open room as she filled her mug and, as Rick always teased, proceeded to destroy the very essence of all that was holy about coffee by stirring in some obscenely-flavored liquid that claimed to be a relative of cream. Not that he was terribly surprised by his inability to break her of the habit. His mother was always one to march to the beat of her own drum.

“Morning, Mother,” he called to her softly as he stepped up to the breakfast bar, his hands buried in his rumpled hair. “You’re up early for a Saturday morning.”

He startled her into a near-jump, her spoon dropping to the counter with a resounding clang. “Honestly, Richard, I swear I’m going to fit you for a bell if you insist upon tiptoeing around her like some…some-”

“Like somebody who owns the place?” The corners of his mouth turned upward in a smug grin.

“Wise guy,” she grumbled, reaching for a towel to clean up her mess. “And I suppose I could ask you the same thing, hmm? Rare is the Saturday morning I see _you_ before the hour reaches double-digits. I take it you were up late last night making up for lost time with Alexis?”

_Lost time_. Rick’s mind instantly conjured up memories of Kate’s body pressed against his in his bed, the last night they spent together already too many nights gone. He gazed down at the watch he’d, apparently, been too tired to remove, and it assured him there were but a few hours left until she’d be home from Chicago. Finally.

“I was, yeah. I was.” He rubbed at his eyes some more, their initially pink hue by now closer to red. “It was great. You know, I don’t think I’ll ever stop being amazed that a kid like that ended up with a dad like me.”

Martha set a mug of black coffee down in front of him- pure, simple, just as he enjoyed it. “Hey, kiddo, look at me.” She didn’t utter another word until he broke from a tender moment with his beloved java and turned his attention to her. “A dad like you is the very best kind of dad there is. You are one of the smartest, kindest, gentlest, most honest men I’ve ever known, and I’ve known a lot of ‘em. That girl up there is damn lucky to have you, and don’t you ever forget that.”

He adored his mother so completely, and he knew with his whole heart that she felt the exact same way about him as he did about Alexis. “Thank you, Mother.”

She reached across the counter and pushed an errant clump of his hair back into place. “Now if you’ll excuse me, darling, I’m going to go back upstairs and sit for a bit. I woke with a headache like you wouldn’t believe. That’ll teach me to let a Friday night pass without a martini or two.”

“Holler if you need anything, okay?”

“I will, darling, thank you.”

As she kissed him on the cheek and made her way up the stairs, he thought blissfully of the women in his life that he loved the most, and how they’d all finally be in the same room together in just a few hours’ time.

**xxxx**

Rick’s phone vibrated against his thigh and he reached swiftly into his pocket to retrieve it, the call from Kate one he’d been anxiously awaiting since he’d opened his eyes that morning. Her flight was in- an unsettling roller coaster of a ride, in her words- and she wanted to check in before heading over to her place for a run on the treadmill and a hot shower. Too much residual energy from the trip home, she explained apologetically, but nothing thirty minutes at marathon pace couldn’t help quash. He had other recipes for relief, he told her with an audible wink, but promised, without much choice, he’d behave himself once she arrived. He just couldn’t promise how long his restraint would actually last.

Alexis woke late, still on the early side for a teenage counterpart in Los Angeles, and she spent nearly an hour with Rick in the office, her eyes blurry with cartoons she now found to be rather silly. Her father, cursed (or blessed) with childlike enthusiasm, of course, did not, his level of active participation in the programs’ goings-on somehow still undeniably charming in its ridiculousness.

“I missed this,” she admitted softly, perhaps not intending for him to actually hear.

Rick’s head snapped around with the exaggerated motion of one of their animated playmates, as though he was trying to capture everything about the moment in his memory exactly as it was happening. “I did too, sweetie. While you were away, your grandmother only wanted to watch old musicals and tapes of her own gigs. I mean, I can only watch that damn Hulk episode so many times before it gets old.”

She exhaled a chuckle. “Tell me about it. All Mom wanted to do in L.A. was run lines all the time, and no offense to the good people over at Lifetime, but Shakespeare it was not. I’m pretty sure _I_ could’ve played the role of Scorned Mistress Number Three after reading that script just once.”

“Meredith really does get all the juicy parts, doesn’t she?”

The two shared a laugh, an effortless moment of connectedness at the playful and harmless expense of people they loved. Just like old times.

“Speaking of Gram, where is she? She can’t still be sleeping. She didn’t even have anything to drink last night.”

“She wasn’t feeling great this morning, so she went back up to rest for a little while. Haven’t seen her since.”

Alexis slid from the cushion of her chair and stood with a stretch. “Maybe I’ll go check on her. I need to shower and get ready, anyway. What time is Kate coming over?”

The way she said it, the tone of her voice, like Kate being a part of their day was as normal as their Saturday cartoon binges, evoked such instantaneous joy in him. “I just talked to her a little while ago, actually. She landed fine, but it sounded like her flight was a bit of a nightmare so she wanted to stop home and take care of a few things first- de-stress before heading over. It probably won’t be for a couple of hours, if I had to guess.”

“Okay, I’ll be down soon,” she said under a yawn, already on her way out.

“Sounds good, sweetie. Would you let your grandmother know about Kate?” He thought he heard a hum of acknowledgement but couldn’t be certain. He picked up the remote and switched the television off with a smile. Alexis’ first Saturday back and they’d already shared cartoons. He scribbled himself a note to include a similar scene at some point in the new book, then folded open his journal and picked up right where he last left off.

**xxxx**

Rick was so caught up in his writing that he lost all track of time. Rather than running out to the grocery store for something to cook for dinner, he decided to call out for Chinese. It certainly wasn’t the grand meal he had planned for the worthy occasion, but time was on his side, once again. His daughter was home now for good. There wasn’t need to try to squeeze everything into her first few days back.

Alexis called out when the knock came, hers the most convenient position for door duty. Rick and Martha barely looked up from their individual tasks, him pulling the cork from a fresh bottle of wine and her fighting with the temperamental lid of a bottle of aspirin, her morning headache now approaching a late-afternoon migraine. She spent most of the day in bed with her blackout curtains drawn, but she wanted a front row seat to the night’s festivities, she insisted, however festive food in tiny cardboard containers could possibly be.

Alexis pulled open the door as she fidgeted with her pocket for Rick’s credit card. “Oh-” she said with surprise. “You’re not Chinese food.”

Kate couldn’t help but laugh at the most unexpected greeting. “No, I’m-” She was just as flustered as the girl who stood before her. “I’m Kate.” She extended her hand and Alexis did the same. “It’s great to finally meet you, Alexis. You’re even more beautiful than your photos.”

“Oh, thank you, and it’s nice to meet you too, Kate. Please, come in. I’m sorry. I thought you were the delivery man.” She stepped aside and let Kate by, Rick already on his way towards them from the kitchen, a dish towel draped over his shoulder. “Dad slaved over his cell phone for two minutes this afternoon ordering food for us.”

“Hey, watch it, kid, or you’ll be forfeiting your fortune cookies to moi.” He pulled Kate against him and held her tightly as Alexis pushed the door closed. “I missed you,” he whispered against her ear, with a soft kiss to her temple.

“Lovely to see you as always, Katherine.” Martha parked herself against the end of the couch, a glass of wine already in hand.

“Hi, Martha.” Kate tugged lightly at the towel over Rick’s shoulder. “So, this is just for show, then, huh? That’s too bad. I like a writer who knows his way around a kitchen.” She smirked playfully and made her way over to Martha to give her a proper hello.

“Nice to see you didn’t lose your way with the ladies while I was gone, Dad.” Alexis breezed by him with a smile and took her spot, once again, in the chair nearby.

“Why do I suddenly feel very outnumbered?” Rick mumbled on his way back to the kitchen. “Can I offer you a glass of wine, Counselor? I see Mother’s already a step ahead of us.”

“Give your old mother a break, kiddo,” Martha protested. “She feels like she got run over by a semi-truck, okay?” She swallowed down another sip of pinot noir.

They all sat together in the living room while they awaited the food delivery, drinks in hand, requisite get-to-know-you talk the order of the hour. Rick didn’t interject often, his focus, instead, honed in so intently on the back and forth between Alexis and Kate that he had to be physically snapped out of his daze and brought back into the moment.

“I’m sorry, what?” Rick asked, as they all stared at him in wait.

“Are you going to tell me the story of how you and Kate met, Dad, or what? You told me in L.A. you wanted to wait until you were together.”

“Oh, yeah, sorry- I can do that.” Kate turned and gave him a where-were-you-just-now look. “Well, um, I was wandering around the city in the bitter cold one afternoon- it was the day I signed my divorce papers, actually- and I ended up at this coffee shop I’d never been to before, one that doubled as a little library of sorts, and-” The second knock cut him off mid-sentence. “And…saved by the knock, I guess.”

Alexis stood and went for the door, Martha remained still, her fingers at her temple, and Kate and Rick gazed at each other like lovesick teenagers, the remainder of his tale floating unspoken between them.

“I love that story,” Kate told him softly.

“Best one I’ve never written.”

Alexis let the door shut with a thud. “Wow. You two think you can manage to stop batting your eyes at each other long enough to eat some Moo Shu?” she teased.

Kate felt the warm blush of embarrassment crawl up her neck to her cheeks.

“Yes, Miss Smarty Pants, we can. And you can _definitely_ kiss those fortune cookies goodbye,” Rick quipped, taking Kate’s and Martha’s hands and guiding them to the dining room table. Their first meal as an entire family.

**xxxx**

Kate excused herself to the office after dinner to check in with Jim. She was so frazzled when she landed at JFK, she honestly didn’t even think to call to let her parents know she was home, and he’d left a message for her during dinner. She smiled as she rounded Rick’s desk and dropped down into his chair, the journal she’d gifted him resting there in front of her, a pen holding the page of his progress, the leather beautifully scuffed from use. She was tempted, certainly, but she refrained, the words, for now, still his and his alone.

“Gram looked terrible tonight. I hope she’ll be able to sleep okay.” Alexis moved around the kitchen and straightened up as Rick loaded their dinner plates and glasses into the dishwasher.

“I’m sure she’ll be fine, sweetie. She’s had a few of these headaches recently, but she’s always back on her well-adorned feet after a couple of days of rest.” He finished with last of the silverware and switched on the washer. “So, can I ask-”

“It’s been killing you, hasn’t it?”

“What are you talking about? What has?”

“Oh, come on, Dad. You want to know what I think about Kate, right?”

“That’s--that’s not even what I was going to ask you.” His tone was about as unconvincing as one could possibly be. “No. What I was going to ask you was, um…what would you like in your omelet in the morning?”

Alexis shook her head, her hand on her hip with marked dubiousness. “I really like her, Dad.” Her expression and her voice softened. “She seems really kind and funny and genuine.” His eyes met hers and she could actually see the relief overtake him in that moment. “And you love her a lot, don’t you?”

“I love her a lot.”

She stepped towards him and he met her halfway, their embrace suffused with an overwhelming feeling of thankfulness that they had one another in their lives, once again. “I’m so glad you found-”

The sudden, heavy sound stunned both of them and they separated instantly.

“What was _that_?”

“Go upstairs and check on Mother. I’ll go find Kate. _Go!_ ”

Alexis bolted upstairs as Rick hurried back towards the office. Kate was still on the phone but met his eye, confused by his clear look of panic.

“ _Dad! Dad!_ _It’s Gram!_ ” Alexis yelled from the top landing. “ _She’s on the bedroom floor!_ ”

Rick turned and ran.


	5. Chapter 5

Despite Martha’s copious and colorful objections, Rick insisted Kate call for an ambulance. He suspected his mother’s wrist was broken from the fall, though she fought bravely to conceal the pain that was so obvious to everyone else, and, as any good son would, he wanted her to receive the most expeditious care possible, which certainly discounted a trip through Saturday night traffic in the Mercedes at his own hand.

He asked, of course, but Martha couldn’t recall exactly what happened. One minute she was on her way back to bed from a trip to the bathroom, and the next her eyes were open and her son was crouched over her body on the floor. It all felt very much like a dream, a piece of theater, a snippet from one of his books. Her head still ached terribly, the tumble to the floor further insult to injury, and all she wanted to do was to sleep until her body was once again ready to cooperate.

Rick wouldn’t allow her to close her eyes, though, not even for a moment, the wise son of a perpetually headstrong mother. Concussion was a definite possibility, and though he was no doctor (which Martha reminded him of more than once), he’d written of enough action and trauma to appreciate that potentiality. Kate seconded the advice wholeheartedly, and to his relief and his bemusement, his mother seemed suddenly more than willing to go along. He was sure to bank that little tidbit for later.

The ambulance arrived quickly, more so than any of them expected given others’ horror stories demonstrating the contrary, and despite Martha’s discomfort, she was the very picture of her healthier self- a nod to the seasoned actress’ the-show-must-go-on style.

“Well, well, aren’t you a handsome young thing,” she cooed to the medic at her side. “How many dates did you have to turn down on this Saturday night?”

He laughed courteously, if not bashfully, and revealed news of his wife, news that elicited exaggerated groans of dismay.

“All the good ones are taken, it seems. What’s a girl to do?” Martha looked to Kate and Alexis, tossed up her still-functional hand in you-know-what-I’m-talking-about frustration.

“Why don’t you just relax, Mother, and let him do his work so we can get you to a proper doctor at some point in the near future. No offense,” he assured the handsome medic.

Kate slid her hand down Rick’s bare forearm and took his hand, and he took Alexis’ in turn. He never dreamed anything like this might happen tonight, but he felt so grateful to have the two of them around him when it did.

Rick sent Alexis along to the hospital in the ambulance with Martha, both to keep her company and to make certain she behaved herself, and he followed behind in the car with Kate, his hand in hers the entire way.

**xxxx**

Rick, Alexis and Kate waited close by while a doctor examined Martha behind a drawn blue curtain. Rick had already filled him in on what little he knew- the recent headaches, the evening’s migraine, how they’d found Martha on the floor after a fall she hadn’t remembered- but he knew of no existing health concerns, at least none his mother had shared. She always managed to remain free from illness for the most part. Illness knew better than to mess with Martha Rodgers, he joked, only half-kidding.

As time in hospitals often does, the minutes ticked by at a pace only a snail might appreciate. Only twenty had passed since the curtain closed, but Rick was up and pacing like a restless husband from the 50s waiting for his child to be born.

“You’re not very good at the whole patience thing, are you?” Kate asked as he passed by again. “Here I thought you were good at everything.”

“I just don’t like hospitals. That’s all,” he all but whispered. “They creep me out.”

Kate and Alexis shared a sideways glance.

“Why don’t I go find you some coffee, Dad. You know how much everyone just raves about the house blend in this place.”

Kate giggled and Rick couldn’t help but stop to enjoy it. “Yeah, that might help. Why don’t you get some for all of us.” He pulled out his wallet and handed her some cash. “And thank you for being you…which is to say, so much like me.” He kissed her on the forehead and off she went towards the front desk to ask for directions.

“Come and sit with me,” Kate said, her hand extended for his.

Rick allowed her to pull him in and he sat, finally, his chair pressed tightly against hers. “She’s wonderful, Rick.”

He eyed her reverently. “She’s…” He hesitated. It wasn’t that he couldn’t find the right word. It was that there were too manyright words and they were all vying for first position.

“She’s _you_.”

Rick reached over the arm of his chair and laced his fingers between hers. “Thank you. That’s--thank you for saying that.”

“I’m not just _saying_ it, Rick. You’ve done an amazing job raising her into the incredible young woman she is now. She’s the very best of you. I hope you see that.” She raised her free hand to cheek. “She really loves you a lot.”

He leaned in and kissed her lips softly. “And I love you,” he told her, his forehead pressed lightly against hers.

“Mr. Castle?” The deep voice emanated from somewhere beyond their bubble for two. “Excuse me, I’m Dr. Moore. I just spent some time with your mother and wanted to update you.”

“Yes, Dr. Moore, I’m Rick Castle.” Rick bounced out of his chair and shook the doctor’s hand. “How’s she doing?”

“Well, we’re waiting for a room to free up so we can have an x-ray done, but it appears the wrist is broken, as you suspected. Once we get the film back, we’ll know better what we’re facing there. If I had to take a guess, right now, I don’t believe surgery will be required, but she may be in a cast for a few weeks. We’ve gone ahead and given her something for any discomfort she’s experiencing.”

“Oh, I’m sure she’s loving that,” Rick teased, turning back to a smiling Kate.

“Now, as for the fall, you mentioned her migraine and I spoke with Ms. Rodgers further about that. Lightheadedness and fainting can often occur with these events. She indicated this hasn’t been a chronic problem for her, but there have been a few episodes of late, however none as severe in nature as this one. For that reason and because of her more advanced age, I’m going to order a CT scan as a precautionary measure. Again, I don’t believe we’ll find anything of concern, but I generally like to err on the side of caution in these cases. It sounds like Ms. Rodgers takes good care of herself and is in otherwise good health. That’s a very positive sign already.”

Rick exhaled the weight of his relief and reached back for Kate’s hand.

“Dad? Is Gram okay?” Alexis returned, her hands stacked with coffee cups, just as Dr. Moore finished his update.

“Hey, sweetie, yeah, she’s okay. I’ll fill you in in a second. Thank you, Dr. Moore. I appreciate all the information and the help tonight. Can I come back and say hi to her for a quick minute? I know she has to go for tests but-”

“Certainly, Mr. Castle. I’ll have a nurse come out to get you and I’ll be back with another update just as soon as I know more.”

“Thanks again, Dr. Moore.”

“My pleasure. See you soon.”

Alexis handed out the coffees and Rick caught her up. A long night loomed ahead for all, it seemed. He flipped up the perforated portion of his lid and swallowed down several large sips of the surprisingly hot and not altogether terrible coffee. He couldn’t help but shake his head as he thought about Martha. Though he had nothing at all to do with the events that precipitated her current predicament, he was certain she would _never_ let him hear the end of any of this.

**xxxx**

An attendant came for Rick a few moments later, the majority of his steaming coffee already downed, a lingering numbness left behind in its wake. He would only admit to himself that the possibilities Dr. Moore raised left him with a modicum of unease. No matter how hard a doctor tries to play down the potential outcomes, no matter how sincere his belief in his assessments, Rick realized, worry never entirely subsides.

He left Alexis behind with Kate, both assuring him they’d be fine without him for the time being, but teasing him with admonitions that he better keep his phone close, just in case. He rolled his eyes for effect, but felt anything but peeved as he walked away with a giddy delight born of their newfound comradery. One evening together and they were already teamed up in playful attack. What more could he have asked for?

“Thanks for coming with us tonight.” Alexis took Rick’s seat next to Kate when he stepped away. “My dad acts tough, but I know he worries. I’m sure your being here makes him feel a lot better.”

“Well, that’s very nice of you to say, but, between you and me, I think your dad needs to work on the whole tough guy thing. I’m not sure he’s fooling anyone.” The two shared a gentle chuckle before a long minute of quiet set in. “And how about you? Are you feeling worried about your grandmother? I mean, you don’t need to talk about it if you don’t want to, but if-”

“Thanks, Kate.” Alexis picked up where Kate’s voice faded off. “I guess I am, a bit. But I know Gram and I know how strong and stubborn she is, and I’m sure she’ll be home finding a way to turn this into some kind of one-woman show by tomorrow morning.”

“Yeah, she’s quite a character, your grandmother. I’ve really enjoyed some spending time with her over the past few months. It’s very easy to see where your father gets his flair for the dramatic. And his enormous heart.”

Alexis turned to her, her fingertip lazily circling the rim of her coffee cup. “You really love him, don’t you? Not that it’s any of my business. It’s just- _I_ really love him too and I want him to be happy, and things haven’t always been easy for him in that department.”

Kate wanted to say so many things. Her mind and her heart raced whenever she thought about him, about her love for him. But Alexis had just come home, and though she could plainly see that things with Rick were already back into some form of comfortable rhythm, she didn’t want to push too much, to say too much, to make Alexis feel like she wasn’t going to have every bit of her father’s attention.

“I do,” Kate answered simply.

Rick made his way back down the hallway towards them in the comfortable silence that followed, the two with eyes on his every step, his reassuring grin. They both stood, eager for his report.

“I’m glad,” Alexis responded, finally, with a level of sincerity that triggered a lump in Kate’s throat. “How is she doing, Dad? Has she gotten the phone numbers of all the cute doctors yet?”

Kate’s eyes remained fixed on her as she spoke- so much her father, so remarkable beyond her years. She already understood, in no time with her at all.

“She told me I owe her a shopping spree when all of this is over, so I think she’s managing just fine. I’m just hoping the meds they gave her will make her forget all about it. I had to have an extra closet put in the last time.”

“I’ll think good amnesia thoughts for you, Dad.”

Rick put his arm around her and the three took their seats together, once again, in anticipation of the many long hours ahead.

**xxxx**

Dawn wasn’t too far off by the time they got Martha settled back in her bedroom comfortably. Dr. Moore agreed with his colleagues’ assessment that the CT scan offered no causes for concern, so he discharged her with just the new cast on her wrist to take care of. His instructions were simple but numerous, and Rick was glad to have Alexis there to absorb them on the family’s behalf. He should’ve had more caffeine, he realized, but with his bed just steps away and zero commitments to be up for later that day, he was grateful he hadn’t.

He kicked off his shoes and tossed his pants unceremoniously onto the chair next to the bed, Kate already curled up on her side of the bed in wait. He stopped for a moment and watched her watch him, and he could feel his exhausted body react to her just as it did at its most alert. It wanted her always- wanted to be close to her, to feel her. But he knew better than to act on it in their current worn out state. What he truly wanted more than anything, then, was to wrap himself around her and to fall asleep in her warmth. He hadn’t had that in far too long.

He climbed into bed and she rolled over onto her other side, as though she’d read his mind and knew. His arm slid along the curve of her hip and pulled her back against him, into the cradle of his body. “Thank you for being you. For being you here with us tonight,” he whispered, his mouth pressed against the exposed skin of her shoulder.

She hummed and he could feel the soft vibration in his lips. “I love your beautiful family.” Her fingers found his at her belly and she wrapped hers tightly around them. “I hope they lo-” Her voice faded into sleep, mid-thought.

“They do.” He knew just the words she’d intended to say. “They love you too.”

Rick’s mind drifted in and out until he couldn’t fight any longer, but he was certain as he, too, succumbed to the weariness, that tomorrow would begin a new chapter, both for his new book and for his future.


End file.
